Taize Prayer Service offered weekly
at St. Mark’s by the Narrows
Begun in October 2004, St. Mark’s offers a Taize Prayer Service every Sunday evening at 5:00 p.m. in their sanctuary. The name of the service comes from the Taize community in France, where Christians from all over the world gather for daily prayer and renewal. It features a form of contemplative singing where simple refrains are repeated again and again, giving them a meditative character.
In their own description of this form of prayer, the brothers of Taize say: “Using just a few words (the songs) express a basic reality of faith, quickly grasped by the mind. As the words are sung over many times, this reality gradually penetrates the whole being. Meditative singing thus becomes a way of listening to God. These songs also sustain personal prayer. Through them, little by little, our being finds an inner unity in God. They can continue in the silence of our hearts when we are at work, speaking with others or resting. In this way prayer and daily life are united. They allow us to keep on praying even when we are unaware of it, in the silence of our hearts.”
At each service there are also readings from scripture, followed by times of silence for prayer and reflection. If they desire, participants can kneel and light a candle at the prayer station which includes a meditation cross and hand labyrinth, a bronze sculpture of Christ by a northwest artist, and an icon of Christ. The worship space also includes a large cross and an icon of Mary with the Christ Child that Pastor Jan Ruud of St. Mark’s brought back from his recent trip to Taize in France.
The public is invited to these weekly services. St. Mark’s Lutheran Church by The Narrows is located at 6730 North 17th Street in the north end of Tacoma. For directions to the church and information about other services, visit their website at www.smlutheran.org.
